


Trust Me, I’m a Doctor

by teetlebros



Category: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Cartoon 2018)
Genre: Blood, Injury, Turtle Tots (TMNT)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-27
Updated: 2018-12-27
Packaged: 2019-09-28 10:38:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,176
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17181401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teetlebros/pseuds/teetlebros
Summary: Little did anyone know that Leo had what it took to be the team healer- himself included.





	1. Origin

“Papa…”  


Splinter grit his teeth together in frustration. He loved his sons very much, but he had asked them to leave him alone for half an hour. Something important was going on in the news, and he needed his loud children out of the way for a while.  


“Blue, I told you not to interrupt me unless one of you was bleeding or dying,” Splinter responded. He kept his eyes trained on the projector screen. “Go and play with your brothers.”  


“Papa.”  


The rat blinked and finally turned away from the screen, looking down at his son. He appeared neither bloody nor dead, but something was wrong. Leonardo was usually boisterous and excited about _something_ at all times. Now, his gaze was shifting nervously, and he seemed much to reserved.  


“Blue, what is the matter?” His young son only swallowed and kicked at the recliner. “Blue, I am not a mind reader. You must tell me, or else I cannot help you.”  


“I think something’s wrong with Donnie!”  


Splinter narrowed his eyes and cocked his head in confusion. His son looked like he was about to run away out of fear. He reached down and grabbed him, pulling the boy into his arms and settling him on his lap.  


“What do you mean?”  


“I- I don’t know!” Leonardo looked frustrated, words building up in the back of his throat that couldn’t be forced out. “Papa, he’s acting really, really weird.”  


“You know that Purple is not like the rest of you,” Splinter reminded sternly, frowning. “He sometimes has trouble with that sort of th-”  


“No, not like that!” Leonardo quickly crossed his hands over his chest, a frantic gesture. “Never like that! It’s like he’s… I think he’s hiding something, Papa. A-and I don’t wanna be a snitch, but I’m only telling you because I think… I think he could be hurt.”  


Splinter furrowed his brow and thought back to his last few interactions with Donatello. He had seen his son only in passing today.  


“Did he play with you, Red, and Orange at all in the tunnels?”  


“No! He’s been alone almost all day.” Leonardo scrunched his little face, red stripes crinkling. “I just don’t know, Papa. Something is wrong. You gotta trust me.”  


Leonardo looked like he had more information than he was letting on. Splinter huffed and picked up the tiny turtle, setting him back on the floor. As he got up from the recliner, Leonardo suddenly grabbed onto his legs.  


“Wait!” he cried out. “Are you gonna go see him?”  


“Is that not what you want?” Splinter asked, raising a brow. He picked his son back up and placed him on the recliner. “Stay here, all right Blue?”  


“Papa, you… you can’t tell him I told you, okay?”  


“How come, my son?”  


“Because Donnie’ll get mad at me! Just don’t tell him I said anything, okay?”  


Leonardo had tears pricking at his eyes, fear washing over him. The last thing he ever wanted was for anyone to be mad at him. Always trying so hard to please, that one.  


Splinter only smiled as he rubbed the top of his son’s head. Leonardo seemed to be calmed by the movement. “Just stay here, Blue. I will be back shortly. Do not worry, okay?” He patted his son’s cheek gently.  


“… yes, Papa.”

—

Splinter normally respected his sons’ privacy, but Leonardo’s words put him way too far on edge. He stood before Donatello’s door, a fist raised and prepared to knock before he lowered it. He would have to apologize for his invasion after whatever was going on was settled.  


The rat ducked down and noted light flooding out into the hallway from under the door. He raised back him and took a deep breath before suddenly pushing the door open.  


Splinter felt his heart sink into his _feet_ , because the sight before him sickened him so much.  


Donatello was sprawled out on his plastron on top of his covers, sobbing as he used a pair of tweezers to pull at his shell. His bloody, bloody shell.  


“Donatello!” Splinter exclaimed, rushing over to his sons with his eyes wide. Using his given name alluded to the seriousness of the situation. “What happened, my son?”  


Donatello gasped and bolted upright, the gesture clearly causing him pain. Blood speckled down onto his sheets, and a few rogue drops onto the floor as well.  


“Papa,” Donatello cried. Splinter couldn’t remember the last time he saw him so expressive. “Papa, I’m s-sorry!”  


“Let me see,” Splinter said, lowering his voice. His son was clearly already panicking; there was no need for him to stress him even more.  


Donatello swallowed and dutifully turned around, his body shaking as Splinter inspected his carapace. There was blood splattered across the entire lower half, and upon closer inspection, there was something scattered, embedded into the soft shell.  


“Donatello, I will not be mad, I promise. But you must tell me the truth. What happened?”  


Donatello heaved in a breath. It was shaky and jagged. “Papa, I… I was experimenting last night, but something went really, really wrong. And- and it just _exploded_ and I turned away but my stupid _shell_ didn’t do anything!” He started wailing again, now a combination of physical and emotional agony.  


“My son… why didn’t you tell me?” Splinter whispered as he slowly pried the tweezers from Donatello’s grasp. He knelt down and began to pry out the remaining glass, his heart breaking every time Donatello winced.  


“I was scared you’d never let me do it again! Experiment! Papa, it’s all I have, please don’t take that away from me!”  


“Donatello, of course not. I would never do that,” Splinter replied. He set down the tweezers and narrowed his eyes at the numerous cuts. Glass-free. “Granted, you will not be allowed to do it for a while, since you will be healing for a few weeks. But I would never forbid you from doing what you love. In the time that you are healing, we can discuss how to make it safer for you, and apply some limits to your work. Okay, my son?”  


Donatello sniffed and wiped at his eyes. “O-okay Papa. I’m really sorry. I am.”  


“It’s okay, my son. Do not worry, you will be okay. Now come to the bathroom, we must clean you up and care more for your injuries. We cannot have them become infected.” Splinter placed a hand on his son’s shoulder as he guided him out of his bedroom. “Donatello… why did you tell Leonardo of this and not me?”  


“Wh-what? Leo? I didn’t tell L-Leo anything.”  


Splinter blinked a few times before looking straight ahead. He… didn’t tell Leonardo?  


“What’s Leo got to-?”  


“Oh, never mind, my son. I am mixing this up with something else. Now, into the bathroom. Let’s get you cleaned up.”

—

Splinter smiled at the sight before him. Donatello had been confined to his bed for the next week. He would only allow him to get up on occasion, either to use the bathroom, eat, or move somewhere else where he could sit and be comfortable. His brothers were more than happy to put tunnel-exploring on hold as their genius recovered.  


All four of them were on Donatello’s bed at the moment. While the purple-clad turtle still had eyes lightly red from crying, he appeared to be in a much better mood. Michelangelo was entertaining everyone with a comic book he made.  


“Blue,” Splinter called in, making everyone look up at the doorway. “Come, I need to talk to you for just a minute.”  


Leonardo nodded and jumped off the bed, telling his brothers not to wait up before leaving the room. Splinter put a hand on his shell as he guided his son back to the recliner, where this whole mess began a few hours ago.  


“My son… how did you know?” Splinter whispered, even though they were far from earshot of any of the brothers.  


“Donnie… when I saw him throughout the day,” Leonardo whispered back, “he had his backpack on. Which is weird, because he always wears it over his shoulder, because he says it doesn’t bother his shell like that. And he was walking kind of funny, y’know? Kinda… waddling, I guess. He was just acting funky all day.” His son rubbed the back of his head. “I should have told you sooner, I’m sorry, Papa.”  


Splinter suddenly grabbed the child in a hug, causing him to yelp. The father pulled back and locked his hands on Leonardo’s shoulders, looking right into his eyes.  


“Leonardo, never apologize for doing what you have done. You saved your brother today, do you understand? You helped him more than you could know. It must not have been easy, to do what you did, and I appreciate it very much. Thank you for coming to me.”  


Leonardo looked back at his father, his eyes wide and shining from unshed tears. “Papa… what happened to Donnie?”  


“It is not my place to say, my son. Ask him, but do not pressure him, to tell you. If he wants to, then he wants to. Do you understand?” Leonardo nodded. “Just know that you helped him today.” He received another nod in response.  


“Can I go back now?” Leonardo asked. “Mikey was getting to a good part.”  


Splinter chuckled and patted his son on the head. 

”Of course, Blue. Go play with your brothers.” Leonardo smiled and took off, before spinning back around at his father’s call. “One more thing, Blue!”  


“Yes, Papa?”  


Splinter slowly blinked at his son. “You and your brothers, I feel like you will always be getting into trouble. It would be good if they had someone they could depend on, to help them and heal them. Do you think you’d be up for that?”  


“Me? But Papa, Donnie’s the smart one, I don’t think that-“  


“Purple is smart, very smart,” Splinter interrupted, holding up a hand. “I won’t deny that. But I don’t think he would have been able to do what you have done for him. I don’t think Red or Orange could, either. Blue… Leonardo, this seems like something only you can do. Are you up for it?”  


Leonardo stared at his father before breaking out into a grin. Splinter’s son was back, but something was different this time around. A new sense of purpose in this messed-up but perfect jumble of a family.  


”I am, Papa.”


	2. Tiger Stripes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The road to self-confidence is full of a few speed bumps, some potholes, and multi-car pileups.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here there be pain and sadness featuring the brand new B-Team, Leonardo dab Vinci and Miguelito! Takes place a year or two after Chapter 1!

“Leon! Leon, come quick!” 

Leo grunted before yelping as he suddenly rolled off the couch, the cries of his younger brother stirring him from his nap quite effectively. He rubbed at his eyes and huffed as he got to his feet and trudged through the lair, feet dragging behind him. 

“What is it? Mikey, I swear, this better be good.” 

“Look, look!” The smaller turtle gestured at the wall, the projected screen displaying images of animals. “Look, Leon, it’s you!” 

Leo’s eyes widened at the Very Big Cat that occupied their wall. It was orange with black stripes, and absolutely massive. He felt his breath catch in his throat as he rubbed a hand down his thigh, practically _feeling_ his own stripes. 

He hated them. He really, truly hated them. They looked stupid, and the ones on his arms looked stupid too, and don’t even get him started on the ones on his face. He had shied away from every family picture, every dreaded photo-op after photo-op. He had to be forced to look at the camera. 

He hated being the ugly one. 

“Isn’t it so cool, Leon?” Mikey asked, vibrating with energy. He was busy multitasking, working on what appeared to be a... birdhouse (?) while simultaneously watching some special on animals. 

“Real cool,” Leo muttered. Mikey was too engrossed in his activities to notice how his brother’s voice dipped. Leo was shying away from the usually-welcomed conversation. “What’s it called?” He hesitantly looked back up at the screen as he asked. 

“A tiger!” Mikey turned to him and busted out a toothy grin. Leo offered a small smile to his brother in return. 

Leo had it all figured out, the reason Mikey latched onto him. Raph was a whole two years older than Mikey, and that made him hard to relate to. Not to mention the fact that their oldest brother was quite literally their biggest as well; Raph weighed more than all of the other brothers combined and was triple Mikey’s size. And even though Donnie and Leo were the same age, Donnie... Donnie was a fantasy, a golden child. No one could emulate his natural genius (even young, seven-year-old Mikey knew that), so there was no point in even trying. 

And that left Mikey to bond and connect with Leo a little more than he did with his other brothers. Boring Leo, with no discernible traits or characteristics. With no talent. 

“That’s real cool, Mike,” Leo finally answered, after what seemed like forever. Mikey giggled and went back to his birdhouse. “That all?” 

“Well, I wanted to show you the tiger! But do you also wanna go tunnel-diving with me later?” the younger asked. 

Leo gritted his teeth before slowly smirking. He had energy to burn and self-hate to expel from his system. 

“How does five minutes sound? Same spot as usual?” 

“Yes!” Mikey replied, enthusiasm smacking Leo in the plastron as he jumped up to his feet. “Let- let me pack, okay?” He gathered up his crafts and scurried around the lair, collecting the usual basic supplies and gear. “I’ll pack snacks too!” 

“Take your time, little brother,” Leo said with a chuckle. “I’ll go tell dad.” 

\- 

Leo didn’t take long to get ready. He told their father of their plans, and he just told them to be back before dinner. He only gathered his swords after that, and then waited for Mikey. He turned up a few minutes later, true to word, with his little drawstring bag on his back. 

The two younger brothers occasionally needed a change of scene in order to be productive; they weren’t like Donnie, who could stay holed up in his lab for days, or Raph, who could lift the same weights for hours. Leo found it difficult to pay attention to his father’s minimal training in the lair, so he had found his own dry little platform in the sewers, surrounded by light water falls that helped him keep his focus, to work on his sword skills. Mikey had gotten curious one day and tailed him, and lo and behold, it became his new favorite place to work on his art. 

Leo didn’t mind all that much. The older brother did enjoy his alone time, but Mikey had the ability to read the room: he knew when his brother needed to concentrate and keep his focus, since it was so difficult to find in the first place. Mikey just kept quiet and silently worked, only engaging in conversation when Leo came over to him for a break. 

“I think I’ve found a shortcut,” Leo said as he placed a hand on the back of Mikey’s shell. “When I headed out a couple’a weeks ago, I found a tunnel that should cut through, but it was under renovation. Been cleared, though. Wanna check it out?” 

“Yeah!” 

\- 

Splinter didn’t have many rules for his children: he was prepared to let them make their own mistakes and learn from them accordingly. So when he actually did have rules, very _specific_ rules, the turtles did him justice by following them. He was lenient with their exploring, and all he asked of them was to stay away from any closed-down areas. 

All four brothers would be lying if they said they were never curious to go exploring in the dangerous and unknown, but in the end their father’s rule, along with their own common sense (more prevalent in some of them than others), prevailed. The turtles never entered boarded-down or taped-up areas, unless it was for a quick second to retrieve a toy that had crossed the threshold. 

While they weren’t currently breaking their father’s rule-if the section had been reopened, that meant it must have been safe-Leo still remained cautious. He kept his hand on the top edge of Mikey’s paint-splattered shell, part casual but mostly protective. His eyes flickered around the dim tunnel, keeping watch for anything particularly dangerous. When it was just him and Mikey, Leo found himself begrudgingly taking on the role of the responsible one. 

“I hear water!” Mikey suddenly announced, and he ran up ahead. “Whoa, Leon! This is so cool! Check it out!” 

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” Leo called after him. He could hear the water now as well, but rather than the steady flow of water that shot down from their usual platform, this water was _roaring_. 

Leo finally caught up to Mikey and followed his gaze before his breath hitched in his throat. Leo staggered backwards and tightly gripped the tunnel wall. Nooooo no no no no. No way. 

Him and Mikey were currently staring out into a massive cylindrical structure. Tunnels just like the one they stood in now were all around them on all sides, some higher and some lower, all spurting out water. The lighting was dim, and Leo... 

Leo couldn’t see the bottom. 

“Mikey, let’s go,” Leo said, voice sharper than usual as he turned around, still clutching the wall as he started walking back. 

“I wonder how far it drops,” Mikey mused. 

Leo tensed up, before feeling relief wash over him as he heard the light patter of his brother’s footsteps. Mikey knew better than to argue with him, and Leo was very happy his brother didn’t ask questions and actually started following him. 

But then, Leo suddenly paused when he heard a crumble, and then a shriek of terror. And most sickeningly, instead of hearing a _splash_ , he heard a loud _CRACK_. 

Leo turned around, breath caught in his throat. He started shaking as he walked back over to the edge. 

“M-Mikey?!” 

The ground right beneath Leo’s feet had crumbled away. The instability must have been what caused the tunnel’s initial shutdown. 

“Mikey!” Leo called again, and yet he got no response. 

His brother had fallen down the massive chute. 

Despite his very best efforts to remain calm, Leo felt his entire body spike in temperature. It was all too hot, and his mouth was too dry, and he was trembling, and he couldn’t process what was happening. 

God, Leo hated heights. When one was as clumsy as he was, with everything being slippery and nothing being easy to walk or run on, one knew his limits. Leo wasn’t scared of much, but he just couldn’t do heights. 

But now he had no choice. Mikey had just _fallen down_. Who knew if he could guess the right tunnel combination that would take him to the bottom. 

Leo tried swallowing, and then he tried swallowing again because the first try did nothing. With hands that just wouldn’t stop shaking, the slider reached behind his back and pulled out his swords. 

“Mikey! I’m coming to get you!” Leo called down, and he still received no reply. From the scream to the thud, it hadn’t taken Mikey very long to hit the... hit the bottom. Seven seconds tops, with the aid of gravity. 

“Don’t worry! I’ll be there soon, buddy!” Leo slowly bent over the edge and jabbed both of his swords below. He shook them, making sure they were embedded in sturdy cement instead of the faulty stuff, and truly tried his best not to think about what he was doing as he swung his body down. 

He was free falling, feet now hanging into the abyss. Tears started rolling down his face as he pulled one sword out and lowered it down the wall. And again. 

And again. Offshoots of metal pipes and falling sediment scraped against Leo’s arms and hit him on the head as he worked. 

“Mikey! I’m almost there!” Leo had no idea if he was almost there, and he had no idea if his brother could hear him, but he was going to keep talking to him anyways. Leo knew Mikey was a box turtle. That meant he could pull himself all the way into his shell. That meant he was okay. 

... Right? 

“Mikey, please, answer me! Let me know-!” 

Leo gasped as he suddenly and quite unexpectedly touched the bottom. It was damp and cold, but there was no water on the ground, which was odd. The rushing of all of the falls around Leo made his head hurt, and as he started exploring the floor he started getting drenched as he wandered into some of their paths. There must be a massive grate that allowed all the water to drain before it could build up. 

Which kind of sucked. Water would be preferable, even the extra nasty sewer water, because it would have broken Mikey’s fall more. 

“Mikey!” Leo called, walking around blindly. He couldn’t see a thing. “Mikey! Please, where are you?!” His voice trembled on that last one, and Leo tried to choke back his tears. He had to be strong for Mikey. 

Leo flipped his swords around, holding them by the flat of the blades, and started feeling his surroundings with his hilts- the last thing he wanted to do was cut Mikey. Or, he would have been feeling his surroundings, but there was only empty space and the occasional deflection of water back into his face. 

“Mikey, I don’t know if- agh!” 

Leo suddenly tripped over something and let out a cry as his blades shifted, cutting at his hands. He quickly sucked up the pain and felt what he had fallen over. It was Mikey-sized. 

“Mikey,” Leo breathed out in relief. His hands were on his brother’s plastron. He gave it a shake. “Mikey!” He set his jaw and stuck his hand in the headhole, patting his brother’s tucked-in face. “Get up! Get up!” 

“I’m up,” Mikey mumbled, voice groggy as his head popped out into the open. 

“Are you hurt? What’s wrong?” Leo asked, settling on his knees as he tucked his katana blades back into their sheaths. “Does your neck hurt? I don’t wanna move you, but-” 

“No, it doesn’t. Everything kinda aches a bit, but nothing hurts. Except-” 

“Except what?” 

“My shell,” Mikey said with a wince. “My shell really, really hurts, Leon.” 

Leo frowned and got to his feet, reaching for a moment before his hand finally connected with his brother’s. “Try standing,” he told him. Mikey did as he was instructed, and when he made it to his feet he let out a whine of pain. 

Then something clattered to the ground. 

“What was that?” Leo asked, eyes widening and trying to see in the dark. He looked around, one hand hovering near a hilt and the other reflexively extending out to Mikey. 

Only when Leo made contact with his brother’s shell, he let out a scream. 

“Mikey?! What- what did I do?” Leo asked. 

“It- I don’t know, it just hurts,” Mikey seethed. 

“Okay, okay. I’m sorry I hit it, I can’t see. Can I touch it?” 

“Y-yeah, just... be gentle.” 

“I will, bro,” Leo assured. He placed his hands at the top of Mikey’s carapace, and slowly worked them down until he felt something startlingly unfamiliar. 

Leo suddenly dropped to the ground, feeling around until his hand came into contact with something hard and sharp around the edges. 

“What, Leo? What is it?” 

“It’s... it’s nothing we can’t take care of, Mikey,” Leo answered. “Now, any idea where that bag of yours landed?” Mikey didn’t answer, instead ducking down and feeling around himself. 

In his hands, Leo turned over what he knew was a piece of Mikey’s shell. 

\- 

“Found the bag!” Mikey cheered as he stood back up, but not without a hiss of pain. “Leo, My shell hurts real bad.” 

“I know, bud,” Leo responded. “I know.” 

“Do you know whats wrong with it?” Mikey’s question was met with silence. “Leo, _please_.” 

“I’ll explain when we get somewhere without so much water beating down on us. I promise.” Leo swallowed and took the bag that Mikey held out to him. He felt around for a few moments before pulling out the flashlight and switching it on. He shone it on his brother’s shell and felt a wave of nausea wash over him. 

Aside from the piece that fell right off, there was a network of cracks branching all across Mikey’s shell. Leo remembered reading in one of the anatomy books with Don- their shell was like a bone. Or it was a bone. He couldn’t remember. Anyways, the amount of pain Mikey must have been in right now... jeez, Leo didn’t want to think about it. 

Leo let out a shaky breath as he moved the flashlight around, looking for a way out at ground level. His eyes widened as he spotted a tunnel. Finally, some luck. 

He put the flashlight in his mouth and moved his swords to his plastron. After looping Mikey’s bag over the sheaths, Leo ducked down and took the flashlight in his hand. “Get on.” 

Mikey gasped at the sudden piggyback proposal and did as instructed, albeit a little too quickly. “Don’t rush,” Leo chastised as his brother settled on his back. He took caution to support his legs rather than his shell, like usual. “Now take the flashlight and get us through that tunnel over there, okay bro? And don’t let us go under any waterfalls.” 

“Got it!” Mikey propped the flashlight on top of Leo’s head, shining the beam forward for him as they made their way out. 

\- 

“It’s _cracked_?!” Mikey started wailing, which only made his pain worse. 

Leo winced as he pulled out the first aid kit from Mikey’s bag. He could have definitely worded that better, but they were kind of pressed for time. 

“I know it’s scary, but don’t worry. I’ll... I’ll fix it.” Leo looked at the contents before him. In the dinky little kit were some alcohol wipes and three bandaids. “Somehow.” 

“That isn’t reassuring!” Mikey shouted through his tears. Leo gently shushed him and placed a hand on his brother’s head. 

“I know, I know,” Leo murmured. “Just try to calm down, Mikey. I know it hurts. But just try to stay calm.” 

‘Try to stay calm for my sake, because I’m freaking the hell out,’ Leo thought. 

The bandaids would hardly be any help. There was too much cracking. And Leo couldn’t risk moving Mikey as he was, because more of his shell was already starting to crumble. 

“Hey, give me your mask,” Leo said as he took off his own. He hated being without his mask. 

Mikey complied and handed over his mask to his brother. Leo tried them together, and with his own longer tails it would be just enough to wrap around Mikey’s shell. He could tie it around where the worst cracking was, for the most part, and that would- 

Leo suddenly dropped the masks and dumped everything out of the bag. He started rummaging through everything they had, everything _including Mikey’s birdhouse_. 

“What are you doing? Don’t break it!” Mikey said as he pulled at his brother’s shoulder. 

“Mikey, the birdhouse!” 

“Wh- it isn’t a birdhouse, Leon!” 

“Were you using glue? Did you pack glue with you?!” 

“Yeah! It’s in there somewhere,” Mikey said with a nod. Leo moved stuff around for a few more seconds before letting out a shout when he grabbed it. Super glue. 

The slider uncapped it and looked to Mikey with a reassuring smile. 

“We’ll be out of here in no time,” the older brother said as he started opening the alcohol wipes. 

Mikey stared at him like he had two heads. 

\- 

It took a lot of walking and a lot of breaks, but Leo finally got to a point where he recognized his surroundings. 

He’d have to thank Mikey for tagging the walls when he woke up. 

Mikey was positioned on Leo’s back yet again, having passed out at some point. Without any proper medication, he must have been in _some_ amount of pain, and Leo was more than happy to let him sleep now that he knew his shell wouldn’t fall off. 

After cleaning up the edges with the wipes, Leo had glued up the cracks (and even managed to fit in the piece of shell that had fallen out) and used the tied-together masks as extra support for Mikey’s shell. 

The older brother trudged through the water in one of the tunnels, mind empty. One foot after the other. And again. And again. That was all he was focused on at the moment. He had to get Mikey home. He needed to be safe. 

Leo himself wasn’t doing too well, either. It was anxiety after anxiety for him today; he still couldn’t get over how high up he was. He never even wanted to climb the stairs in the lair again. He could stay on the ground forever. Ideally, at least. 

The pure joy Leo felt when he stumbled into the lair had never been felt by him before. He let out a soft laugh, laden with disbelief, causing Donnie and Raph to look away from their ping pong game. 

“Go get dad,” Leo instructed as he carefully slid Mikey off of his back. The older brothers looked at each other with wide eyes before rushing off to find their father. 

Mikey groaned and slowly blinked his eyes open as he made contact with the ground. They burned, and he had fresh tear tracks on his face, a result of crying in his sleep. He wiped at his eyes and looked up at his brother. 

He hadn’t noticed before, but Leo’s arms and hands were covered in harsh, red scratches. Mikey smiled up at his brother, who was busy untying the masks from around his shell. 

“What?” Leo asked. “Donnie and Raph are getting dad,” he added. 

“More stripes,” Mikey said, voice a little high. He felt like he could go to sleep and never wake up. 

“What?” 

“You got more stripes. Like the tiger.” Mikey gestured weakly to Leo, who looked down at himself and blinked with surprise. Huh. 

“Guess I do,” Leo said, mouth pulling into a frown as he touched below his eyes. He didn’t have his mask on. He _hated_ not having his mask on. 

“Leon,” Mikey said, and Leo snapped out of it and looked down at his brother. 

“Yeah?” 

“They’re awesome. Tigers are super good fighters and they’re really brave. Like you! That’s why I wanted to show them to you. Because of those reasons, not ‘cause of the stripes.” 

Leo blinked a few times very quickly as he stared down at Mikey. “R-really?” 

“Yeah! The super cool stripes are just a bonus!” 

And Leo smiled. 

\- 

Kintsukuroi: “to repair with gold”; the Japanese art of repairing pottery with gold lacquer and understanding that the piece is more beautiful for having been broken.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow my tumblr: @turtlebrothers!


End file.
